


Lila's oversight

by tawnwriter



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: does lila's mom have a name?, lila is honest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-05-02 14:06:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19200409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tawnwriter/pseuds/tawnwriter
Summary: Lila had never felt guilt over lies before. Then again, she had never let them grow this far.And she had certainly never expected them to hurt her family.-When Lila's lies cause the suspension and akumatisation of her mother, Lila is left with little choice but to reveal everything she has done to the class.





	Lila's oversight

“We are incredibly disappointed to hear of this, Mrs Rossi.”

 

She tries to stammer her way through an explanation, but her superior is not willing to listen.

 

“What reason would your own daughter have to lie about your travels? Her interview is on a well-known Parisian news source, the validity of her statements were likely checked. The board’s decision is final. Effective immediately, you are on suspension, pending investigation. If we find that the work you sent here during the questioned timeframe is legitimate, your suspension will be removed. If, however, we find that the work was fabricated, that you had removed your daughter from school and were travelling on embassy time instead of completing the tasks you were assigned, you will be removed from your position immediately and the resident permit we provided for you shall be revoked. Is that clear?”

 

She nods, though he cannot see, and the call ends. 

 

_ Diplomatique, I am Hawkmoth _ .  _ Your daughter’s tales have threatened everything you have worked so hard to achieve… _

* * *

The next day, Lila hesitates before opening the door to class. Her mind can only replay the events of the night before in her head. She squares her shoulders, and pushes open the door. Alya waves at her happily, and she returns it, though with none of her usual exuberance. She takes her seat next to the reporter.

 

Marinette enters a moment later, eyes focussed on her phone as she types something out. Likely a distraction, Lila thinks, because her eyes do not move from the screen until she’s safely settled into her seat at the back. Alya makes a snide comment under her breath, and Lila winces.

 

She’d never felt guilt over lies before. Then again, she had never let them grow this far. 

 

And she had certainly never expected them to hurt her family.

 

She hardens her resolve, and stands.

 

“Lila? Is something the matter?” Mme. Bustier asks, eyes creased in concern.

 

Lila walks to the front of the class to face the others, all but two looking at her with various degrees of concern and worry. Chloe looks curious, Marinette looks resigned.

 

“I need to be honest with you all.”

 

Marinette’s expression changes from resignation to shock. 

 

“Marinette!” Alya’s voice is sharp, and it shocks everyone, “What have you done to her?”

 

Marinette shakes her head, and drops her gaze to her book.

 

“I lied!” Lila blurts, and Alya turns back to her, eyebrows raised.

  
“What are you talking about, Lila?” Rose asks, head tilted in confusion.

 

“My mother was akumatized last night because of the interview I put on the Ladyblog,” She speaks quickly, trying to get it out without letting the class interrupt, “I don’t know Ladybug, I don’t even  _ like  _ Ladybug, I don’t know any celebrities, I never rescued Jagged’s cat and I’ve never been to Achu. I told my mother that the school had been shut down due to Akuma attacks. Yesterday, the Italian embassy called my mother and suspended her because of my claims - they said that if she was travelling with me, then she was not working, and so the work she sent was obviously fabricated.”

  
“So.. Marinette was right?”

 

Lila nods at Max.

 

“I don’t know how, but Marinette’s always known I was lying. I turned all of you against her so that she wouldn’t get in my way anymore. Everytime I accused her of hurting me or saying cruel things, I was lying to get you to hate her. And it worked.”

 

Mme. Bustier frowns, placing a hand on the Italian girl’s shoulder.

 

“Lila, these are… serious things you are admitting to, here.”

 

“You think I don’t know that?!” She snaps, “My mother was akumatized because of me. She could lose everything all because I wanted to impress people. She asked me to be honest with you all.”

 

“I’m proud of you, Lila”

 

The class turns to see Adrien in the door, smiling.   
  
“See? I told you, you didn’t need to lie!”

Alya slams her hands down on the desk, and points menacingly at the blonde.

 

“You mean to tell me, you knew? You knew, and you didn’t tell anyone? You let all of us turn against Mari and - “

 

“He didn’t.”

 

Marinette stands, her voice calm.

  
“Lila planted the seeds for sure, and Adrien did not stop her, but neither of them forced you against me. You chose to do that, all on your own. I’m glad you’re being honest now, Lila, though I am sorry that it took your mother being hurt this badly for you to realise that your lies were every bit as selfish and harmful as I always believed them to be.”

 

She looks each member of the class in the eye.

 

“But that doesn’t change what you did. What you all did.”

 

She sits down, and returns to her notes.

 

The silence in the class is deafening, and Mme. Bustier is the first to break it.

  
“Lila? I believe we need to speak to Mr Damocles.”

 

The girl nods, and allows Bustier to lead her from the classroom. Adrien settles into his seat, though Nino doesn’t even spare him a glance before moving to sit next to Alya, who is angrily typing into her phone.

 

That evening, Lila’s interview is gone, and a new video is posted, with Alya apologising to her viewers. The next morning, Marinette gets a text from her former friend, apologising for everything. One apology doesn’t fix everything, though, and she doesn’t respond to the request for a “bestie meetup”. 

 

The next week, Mme. Bustier told the class that Lila and her family have returned to Italy. The suspension had been lifted, but she had been told to return. 

 

The expulsion of her daughter had not looked good, after all.

 

Two days after the announcement, Marinette transferred schools, a motion that had been in the works for weeks. She ignored the texts, rushed apologies that she no longer believed they meant.

 

She had been right about Lila. Her lies had caught herself out, and the hurt she had caused was obvious in the fragmented and disjointed remains of the class she had left behind.

 

She would move forward. They would all move forward.

 

There was no other option.

  
  



End file.
